The Minute Man is an 1874 sculpture by Daniel Chester French located in
Minute Man National Historical Park in Concord, Massachusetts. The
statue depicts a minuteman stepping away from his plow to join the
patriot forces at the Battle of Concord, with a musket in his hand. Cast
from ten bronze cannons, it was unveiled on April 19, 1875, during the
centennial celebration of the Battle of Concord. It received critical
acclaim and continues to be praised by commentators. The pose resembles
that of the Apollo Belvedere and it was assumed that the pose was
transposed from this, but modern art historians have shown that the
Apollo Belvedere was only one of several statues used in French's
research. The statue has been a symbol for the suffragettes, the United
States National Guard and the Air National Guard, and has been used on
the Lexington–Concord Sesquicentennial half dollar and the
Massachusetts state quarter coins.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Minute_Man>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1775:
The American Revolutionary War began with the Battles of
Lexington and Concord in the British colony of Massachusetts.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battles_of_Lexington_and_Concord>
1903:
Anti-Jewish riots broke out in Kishinev, the capital of
Bessarabia Governorate, causing the death of nearly 50 Jews and focusing
worldwide attention on the persecution of Jews in Russia.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kishinev_pogrom>
1956:
American actress Grace Kelly became the princess consort of
Monaco upon her marriage to Rainier III, Prince of Monaco.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Kelly>
1975:
South Vietnamese forces withdrew from the town of Xuân Lộc
in the last major battle of the Vietnam War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Xu%C3%A2n_L%E1%BB%99c>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
Bronx cheer:
(US, idiomatic) Synonym of raspberry (“a sound intended to resemble
flatulence made by blowing air out of the mouth while the tongue is
protruding from and pressed against the lips, used humorously or to
express disdain or scorn”).
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Bronx_cheer>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
It can now be stated that Russian troops have begun the battle
for Donbas, for which they have been preparing for a long time. A very
large part of the entire Russian army is now focused on this offensive.
No matter how many Russian soldiers are driven there, we will fight. We
will defend ourselves. We will do it daily. We will not give up anything
Ukrainian, and we do not need what’s not ours.
--Volodymyr Zelenskyy
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy>